TVS Motor Buys Stake In Switzerland Based Electric Bike Company
TVS Creon Electric Scooter
TVS makes second big European acquisition after it acquired iconic British two-wheeler brand Norton Motorcycles
TVS Motor Company has made another major acquisition of a European firm, this time in the field of electric mobility. The Indian bikemaker has acquired majority stakes at Switzerland-based EGO Movement which makes electric bicycles.
The company has struck an Rs. 132-crore (CHF 16.6 million) all-cash deal to pick 80 percent stakes of EGO. The remaining 20 percent will be held by the founders of the Swiss company. The deal was made through TVS’ Singapore-based subsidiary TVS Motor Singapore Pte. Ltd.
TVS In Europe
This is the second major acquisition by TVS in Europe after it bought the iconic British brand Norton Motorcycles. After the latest development, TVS plans to grow its presence in the electric mobility space across Europe and later expand to other markets such as India and USA.
The company expects to generate a revenue of USD 100-150 million from the e-bike business in the next five years. Joint Managing Director of TVS, Sudarshan Venu, affirmed that the deal is progress towards delivering unique e-mobility solutions.
EGO Electric Bike
Led by the co-founders Daniel Meyer and Marie So, EGO Movement is a Swiss technology company providing a wide range of mobility solutions such as e-bikes, e-cargo bikes, and e-scooters. The brand has expertise in combining designs with software and hardware. At present, it has a very small omni-channel network of 10 retail stores across Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany with plans to expand across Europe.
Expansion & Growth Plans
The Swiss company currently employs around 40 people. EGO has reported annual sales of around 3500 units last year with a revenue of USD 6 million in 2020 The brand looks to expand its presence by ramping its retail network to 20 stores by 2022 and 32 by 2025. With the proposed expansion, TVS expects the revenue of EGO to grow to CHF 10 million this year and about USD 100 million (CHF 90 million) in about five years.
Venu added, “We’re building a strategic personal e-mobility ecosystem by scaling unique brands which share our vision of delivering compelling customer experience benchmarks through cutting-edge, aspirational products.” He further revealed that the e-mobility space is growing at a double-digit CAGR particularly in European markets like Germany, Switzerland and Netherlands.
TVS has been in the news in the past few hours ever since it launched a new 125cc sporty commuter motorcycle in the form of Raider. The bike has been offered at a starting price of Rs 77,500 and packs a lot of goodies for a 125cc motorcycle. More